Not legitimate: Bennet is the prime minister in name only, not based on any political grounds. Usually the prime minister is the leader of the largest political party which gives him the legitimacy of the representative of its many voters, plus the political base of the party itself.
Bennet is the leader of a very small party that campaigned on a platform opposing any linkup with the left and Yair Lapid. As the leader of a small party he would never expect to become prime minister. As the leader of a right-wing party he would not be expected to partner with parties such as he has. From the polls it seems as if his voter base is not happy with his actions. Thus he represents virtually no one, and all of his government partners know this well.
His anti-democratic communication bordering on anti-Semitism discussed below is another black mark against him and against the country he represents.
In connection with this it is important for me to note, precisely here, an interesting idea: many columnists (including myself) have trouble calling Bennet 'the prime minister.' Let's assume that a prime minister gained the public trust, as did the previous ones, and presuming that in the future it would be Yair Lapid, who admittedly enjoys the public support of 20 mandates, but in Bennet's case, he is not a legitimate prime minister at all.
Bennet is a prime minister in title alone, without any political base. He is an undemocratic prime minister who speaks out against democracy and attempts to minimize the power and influence of 16 legitimate mandates (of the chareidim), solid and legal, mandates which have been proven time and again through many election campaigns, as opposed to him. He usurped the post through trickery and lies, deceiving the voters, being fully aware that this was a one-time foul act since he will never gain that office again.
All this leads to questions begging an answer: What does he think? Is everything planned or pre planned by him? Does he have any particular strategy behind his inane actions which repeat themselves week after week? Time will tell!
Last week, in an incredibly senseless speech the prime minister stated that he is happy that there do exist chareidim in Israel, but "we must prevent them from exerting too much political clout." Do you understand? Someone whose party received only 6 Knesset seats and is today fluctuating back and forth around the electoral threshold, has the gall to speak against a stable public whose worth of some sixteen seats or more has proven itself throughout several consecutive elections.
No wonder that the reactions to this statement were extremely sharp, including the caricature appearing above from Yated where Bennet is shown holding on to the handle of Lieberman's famous wheelbarrow which is on its way to fling the chareidim into the nearest garbage dump. (During the recent election campaign Lieberman famously said that he would take a wheelbarrow and carry the chareidim to the nearest garbage dump.) Bennet has deservedly gained this cartoon after such hate-mongering remarks.
"I find it difficult to understand how such a thing goes unnoted in your country," a friend in New York wrote to me. "Try to imagine a congressman voicing such a comment by us and saying that we should limit the Negro political power? All of America would be up in arms with protest demonstrations, Millions would go out to the streets and that congressman would be expelled immediately. And here in Israel, it passes unnoticed. I don't begin to understand you!"
